Everybody Wants a Spot: Why Free Parking is a Bad Idea
See Donald Shoup, author of The High Cost of Free Parking, speak about the critical reasons cities need to reform their parking policies.
11:40 AM PST on February 9, 2010
See Donald Shoup, author of The High Cost of Free Parking, speak about the critical reasons cities need to reform their parking policies.
Before he began blogging about land use and transportation, Aaron Donovan wrote The New York Times Neediest Cases Fund's annual fundraising appeal for three years and earned a master's degree in urban planning from Columbia. Since then, he has worked for nonprofit organizations devoted to New York City economic development. He lives and works in the Financial District, and sees New York's pre-automobile built form as an asset that makes New York unique in the United States, and as a strategic advantage that should be capitalized upon.
Streetsblog has migrated to a new comment system. New commenters can register directly in the comments section of any article. Returning commenters: your previous comments and display name have been preserved, but you'll need to reclaim your account by clicking "Forgot your password?" on the sign-in form, entering your email, and following the verification link to set a new password — this is required because passwords could not be carried over during the migration. For questions, contact tips@streetsblog.org.
More from Streetsblog San Francisco
We Went to Sacramento Because Enough Is Enough
We were not there as professional lobbyists. We were there as people carrying grief, trauma, and urgency into the halls of power.
May 13, 2026
San Francisco Cuts Ribbon on Terry Francois Bikeway
The Port gap is closed in the Bay Trail through Mission Bay
May 13, 2026
Study: Trump’s Transit Proposal Would Cost the Country So Many Jobs — And Not Just in Cities
... but an increase in funding would be a job-creating juggernaut.
May 12, 2026
Opinion: It’s Time to Rethink Our Congestion Obsession
Policymakers constantly suggest that we need to spend billions of dollars and bulldoze countless acres of land to fix traffic jams. But do we?
May 12, 2026